Ferry Funny

Let me see if I understand things. The Superferry, which was running at about 50% capacity even in its so-called stronger months, faced all kinds of objections and protests, and finally left town under a veil of environmental uncertainty and finger-pointing. The rail issue is tossed around like a hot potato, week in and week out. The City of Honolulu tried, to make TheBoat float, ferrying folks from leeward Oahu to the downtown area. It's gone for now. TheBus has had problems getting its ridership to necessary levels, even when gas prices spiked.

So that sets the stage for two transportation ideas. The Army may use Superferry-like vehicles to transport personnel and equipment, basing it at Pearl Harbor. Of course, one would assume that the Army will do all of the necessary legal work to ensure that we don't have a similar Superferry snafu, again. And the State House is looking at a study to see if a state-sponsored ferry system could make a go of it here. Really? We could end up with the State of Hawaii running a water vehicle or vehicles similar to the Superferry, which had great marketing and nice reviews in its short time here, but is long gone?

Sure, it's all possible; but a thorough check with the B.C. Ferries folks up in British Columbia and the ship runners in Seattle ought to be a priority before anyone gets too excited or heated up about this very difficult undertaking. Just keep in mind, it's an election year, so lots of ideas will get floated; hopefully those that move forward will have some real intelligence and forethought put into them. Think about it…